What You Discover Together
by Tybalt Volumnia
Summary: Companion piece to From the Ashes. TailsxMina Slight AU from Archie Comics
1. An Argument

This is a companion story to From the Ashes. You don't have to read either one to understand the other, but I would suggest it.

I do not own Sonic or any of the other characters here in. They are Sega's and Archie Comics.

* * *

Dawn came over New Mobotropolis. A reminder that life continued on, and that the world still turned. Citizens woke up and were thankful that they hadn't been attacked once again during the night. One mongoose was sad to see the morning though.

Mina hadn't been having the nightmares about Nicole ever since the concert where she sung about what she thought people needed to hear. Her boyfriend Ash had said that it was because she had finally been able to let loose and express her emotions but Mina knew better. Her nightmares stopped when she heard that Nicole had been in complete control for almost the entire occupation by the Iron Dominion.

When Sally had told her this Mina didn't want to believe it. She tried to fool herself that it was just Sally trying to stand up for her friend. However, when she realized that what the princess had said was true, it was to late. Her song had already taken a hold of the people's minds and they had begun to get very close to wanting blood.

This morning meant another day she would have to live with this fact and it was weighing heavily on her soul. Pushing herself up and turning she just sat there, still in bed but her feet ready to land on the ground, staring down at the wood floor.

"Nicole?"

She wasn't expecting an answer, but part of her hoped that some of the A.I. had been left behind. She was desperate to be able to apologize to Nicole but hadn't gotten the courage yet. Now however, with Nicole being confined to Freedom HQ, she realized that she would need to hurry or it could end up being far to late.

Almost leaping out of her bed, she quickly ran around her house, showering, getting dressed, all of her normal routine but faster than usual. Grabbing a piece of fruit as she left her house she charged through the city using her super speed to get to HQ as fast as she could.

* * *

Tails was outside of Freedom HQ and was tinkering with the Tornado. He had been flying it around so he could make sure that it was still working well after the last battle. It was also to get his mind off of the recent happenings.

He and Nicole had always been good friends and it was painful to know that the people had begun to hate her as much as they had. What hurt him more though was that Mina, one of their friends, a wonderful person, had unknowingly brought all this about. Because she didn't really think through what her actions might bring about, Nicole was now forced to endure all of this humiliation.

Tails smashed his fist on the engine block of the Tornado in anger as he thought on all of this. Slowly lowering his fist and sighing he started to analyze his plane to make sure that he hadn't missed anything that might need fixing.

A sudden gust of air and the sound of the HQ's door slamming shut interrupted his examination. Smiling a little he grabbed a nearby cloth and cleaned up his hands. Sonic had been suffering as well after Sally had been grievously injured during their latest battle with Eggman. Tails was hoping that they could keep each others minds off of their problems, at least for a little while.

* * *

Mina felt a little bad about not stopping and saying hello to Tails but she thought it best to face Nicole as soon as possible while she still had the courage. She could talk with Tails later. After she had closed the door she slowly began walking to the computer room. Breathing was getting more and more difficult with every step but she was adamant that she would do this. Slowly stepping into the room she walked over to the computer and stopped in front of it.

"Nicole?"

She felt a presence behind her and she turned expecting to see Nicole's hologram form. However she was greeted by a not very happy looking Tails.

"Oh, Tails. I thought for a second you were Nicole."

Tails continued to glower at her, he merely crossed his arms over his chest and didn't answer. This was very odd for Tails, he was usually a very happy person so this change in his actions scared her a little.

"W-well, is Nicole here? I thought that should would be but maybe she is somewhere else?"

"What do you need Nicole for?"

There was a hint of steel to his voice and Mina suddenly felt that she was treading on the proverbial minefield. Something was definitely off about Tails. She knew that her song had affected the view of the people on Nicole but she didn't realize that it had affected the Freedom Fighters view of her.

"I...I came to apologize. I realize that my actions have caused more harm than good. I wanted to tell Nicole that."

What happened next not even Tails could explain. Maybe it was because he had been working so hard on the Tornado, maybe because Sally was stuck in the hospital and the Nicole was being unjustly persecuted by the people because of Mina's song. Whatever reasons, Tails had snapped.

Mina could feel that she had said something wrong. Tails glare had suddenly gone icy and felt like it was piercing her. His hands had gone down to his sides, and he kept clenching and unclenching them. He slowly walked towards her and began to speak.

"Apologize? You want to apologize?"

He wasn't yelling, we wasn't screaming, he was simply talking normally, but Mina could hear the strain in it. He kept slowly walking towards her and she took a step back.

"Precisely what are you going to apologize for? Your song? The fact that she was forced to be confined here? Or maybe because the people hated her enough that they wanted to kill her, and might have if not for us?"

Mina's throat dried up when he mentioned that Nicole had been threatened. She tried to swallow but she was unable to. Tails had stopped walking when he was an arms length away. He just continued to glare at her and noticing her reaction he continued.

"Yeah, that's right. Nicole's very existence was threatened by some of the villagers. We were lucky that we got word of it and now Nicole is safe where no one can find her."

By now Mina could feel tears beginning to fall down her cheeks. She had no idea that her song would cause such a reaction. Seemingly reading her mind Tails continued his tirade.

"Why did this happen Mina? Why was Nicole forced to leave her friends, her only family, to protect her very life? You."

Tails very words seemed to be filled with venom but they kept coming.

"It is because of you and your decisions that she, who tried nothing more then to make our lives easier, had to run. Now you come here and want to apologize for this! It's a bit late for that isn't it!"

Now he yelled. He screamed and let loose all the anger he had been holding in ever since this whole mess began. He hadn't noticed that Mina was crying, all he wanted was to let her feel what her decisions had led to.

Mina was scared. Never had she seen him this angry. Knowing that what had happened had made him this mad scared her. Now she heard that some people had tried to kill Nicole and that now she was somewhere away from the place she loved hurt her even more.

As Tails caught his breath he started to see Mina's reaction. The tears streaked her face and her eyes showed the fear he had instilled in her. Guilt hit him hard and he realized that he had gone to far.

"Mina...I-I didn't mean to.."

He lowered his head and berated himself. As he lifted his head to try again she beat him to it.

"No Tails, you are right. I am to blame for this. I'm sorry for coming and for what has happened. Goodbye."

Mina walked past Tails and he could hear the front door close as he stood, rooted to the spot. As he stood there he began to think of what to do. He had crossed the line and now he needed to fix it.

* * *

Woah, Tails really lost it. How does he plan to fix this? What about these people that wanted to kill Nicole, what will happen to them? I'll figure it out soon.

Thank you for reading and please review. Until later,

Tybalt


	2. An Apology

Hoo boy. I know I haven't been updating at all, but my sister graduated this year and so we've had relatives coming around. I may not update regularly, but I will always finish a story I start. I thank all of you who were patient for this, and I will try to get back into writing more regularly.

I do not own any of the characters, they are owned by Archie and Sega

* * *

Night had fallen hours ago, signaling the retreat of the citizens of New Mobotropolis into their homes and to bed. The stars shone down upon the moon, whilst the moon shone it's reflection of the sunlight down onto the earth. The light it shed allowed a young adolescent fox to see what was around as he crept around the side of a building.

Tails pressed himself flat against the wall when he neared the edge of the house across from his destination. He stooped down to grab a handful of small stones, keeping his eyes and ears open for any signs of life. This was something he needed to do, but it needed to be kept as quiet as possible.

Glancing up and down the street, he quickly ran to a house across the way. Making one last check that no one was around and sizing up the height of the second floor window he hurled the pebbles he had picked right at it. Waiting a few seconds he then let out a soft call,

"Mina!"

* * *

After her visit to Freedom HQ and Tails outburst Mina had spent the rest of the day up in her room. Ash had tried to get her to come out and talk to him most of the afternoon but she had told him that what she needed was some time alone. She could tell he had sat by her bedroom door, but after sometime he had left.

Tail's accusations had been running around in her mind all day. Had he been right? Was all the trouble that Nicole had recently been forced through all due to her song? Were Tail's feelings shared by the rest of the Freedom Fighters, and if so was she hated by all of them? These questions had plagued her all day. She had tried to go to sleep and deal with them the next day, but rest seemed to be playing hide and seek with her that night.

Sitting up in bed she glanced out her window and saw that the moon had already reached it's peak. Groaning she placed her head back down on her pillow and just stared up at her ceiling.

Several moments later a loud noise came from her window. Looking up and expecting to see a storm raging she was surprised to see a perfectly clear sky.

"Now what on earth..."

"Mina!"

Jumping at the sound of her name being called from outside she slowly fiddled with the lock of her window and pushed it open.

Looking down to the street she saw Tails standing there looking up at her. He seemed to be rather fidgety, constantly clasping and unclasping his hands together. She didn't know why, but a small bit of hope seemed to appear after seeing this but she kept it down, not wanting it to be crushed.

"Mina"

Looking down at the small fox, Mina gave him a puzzled look.

"May I come up?"

Mina thought this over for a second. At this point she had two choices. One would be to allow him to come up and hear what he had to say, good or bad. The other would be to say no, close her window and continue on with her forced solitude but then she would be unable to know what he had to say.

However Mina, like most people, had a healthy sense of curiosity which seemed to choose for her.

"Alright."

Letting out a breath he didn't even know he was holding, Tails flew up to Mina's window and floated there.

* * *

Now they were face to face, and Tail's nervousness seemed to increase tenfold. There was a small stutter in the spinning of his tails making him drop a little but he caught himself and got the rhythm back. Was this what she had felt when she came to Freedom HQ? He felt even more like a heel for what he had said. As he looked at her though he could see a well trod out tear trail in the fur of her cheek. While this did make him feel even worse, he was also emboldened to do what he knew to be the right thing. Taking a deep breath, he looked right at her and began.

"Mina, I need to apologize for what I said today. It was uncalled for and untrue. You came to apologize and I should have been more accepting of that apology."

The hope that Mina had kept quiet seemed to grow with every word Tails had said. She started to sniff a little but a smile had begun to grace her face once more. Tails hadn't noticed however, his eyes having left hers and dropped to stare at the ground."

"I am truly, truly sorry for what I said, and I can only hope that you can find it in your heart to forgive me."

Reaching out with one hand, Mina grabbed Tails and pulled him into a deep hug. Her arms were wrapped around his body and she put her chin on his shoulder.

"Of course I forgive you Tails. I...You...We have both said things we now regret. But can you ever forgive me for what I did?"

Pushing himself out of the hug but keeping his hands on her shoulders, Tails looked at Mina straight in the eyes and replied,

"Yes. You didn't mean for any of this to happen and I shouldn't have blamed you for it in the first place."

They both smiled at each other for sometime afterwords. Mina had never noticed how blue his eyes really were. She felt that she could forever stare into them, continually falling farther and farther in their color. She didn't even notice when she started to lean in closer to him.

She failed to notice that he was just a little to far away from the window and suddenly began to lean to far out.

"Mina! Watch out!"

Suddenly snapping out of her daze, she noticed that she was to far out then she should be. Trying to right herself she found that it was too late.

"Woah!"

Dropping down fast, Tails placed his hand on her shoulders and pushed, successfully getting her back up. He pushed a little to hard though and she fell backwards onto the floor.

Putting her hand on her chest, Mina took a few seconds to catch her breath.

"You okay Mina?"

Looking back up at him, but trying to avoid looking at his eyes, she saw that he had sat down on her window sill.

"Yes, I'm fine. Thanks."

Smiling, Tails chuckled a little.

"It's nothing. Couldn't have you falling out of your window, now could I?"

She let out a little giggle at this and smiled back at him. As she stood up and dusted herself off a little Tails noticed she was in her pajamas and coughing a bit, began to distract himself form her by glancing around the room.

Really, there wasn't much stuff around. It was simple, neat, and everything seemed to be exactly placed. Even the clock on the wall.

Tails did a double take when he saw the clock.

"Oh man, I need to get back home, my parents will kill me if they find out I was out this late."

Feeling a little down that he had to leave, put on a small smile.

"Okay. Thanks for coming Tails. It was very good of you."

"Hey, what kind of person would I be if I didn't try and face my mistakes?"

This comment seemed to put a little flame in Mina's heart, letting her voice a question that had plauged her for sometime.

"Hey, Tails? Do you think that... Well... I was wondering if I could, you know, help fix the trouble with Nicole?"

A large grin spread across Tails face, and though he wanted to run over and hug Mina, he controlled himself.

"Of course Mina. I'm sure that Nicole would be thankful as well."

With that, Tails waved goodbye and jumped out of her window, flying off towards his house.

* * *

Phew. I spent more time on this chapter than any of my other stories. I had the biggest case of writers block ever. Anyway, Please read and review. Specifically the Review part, I would really enjoy some constructive criticism. NO FLAMING!


	3. A Meeting

Here we go, another chapter uploaded. Thank you all for waiting patiently. I own nothing all characters belong to either Archie or Sega.

* * *

Mina had practically floated to sleep after her talk with Tails that night. When her alarm went off, she turned it off, and bounded around her house, humming a little tune to herself. She couldn't help but feel ecstatic, she had been forgiven for her mistake and now had a chance to fix it. Giggling a little, she continued to munch on her breakfast. Afterwards, she was putting on a little makeup, not enough to be trying to impress, but just a delicate amount. It wasn't like she was trying to flirt with Tails.

Suddenly someone began to knock on her door. Setting her brush down on her desk she got up and called out,

"Come on in, the door's open!"

Walking out of her room and heading downstairs to her front door, she began to wonder who it was.

'Did Tails decide to come over? I assumed that we would meet at H.Q but he might have thought that we would talk here.'

Walking slowly down her stairs, she peered around the corner and saw that it wasn't Tails... it was Ash.

"Good morning Ash!"

Mina walked towards him and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. He had seemed rather tense when she first came down, but the kiss seemed to relax him a little. He smiled at her and dropped his shoulders a little.

"You feelin' better babe?"

Mina nodded her head.

"Yeah. Sorry if I worried you, I just had a lot on my mind. I am feeling better though."

Ash seemed to really perk up at this and brought Mina into a hug. Mina returned it but not with as much enthusiasm. As much as she loved her boyfriend, she did need to hurry and head out to talk with Tails.

"So, I was thinking that we could go out today, you know, just walk through the forest, maybe stop off at Chucks diner for a quick meal. What do you think?"

Mina could see the happiness in his eyes at the prospect of spending time with her. Unfortunately, she knew that she would have to crush this happiness. At least for now. She promised herself that she would make it up to him later.

"I'm sorry Ash, but I've already got something planned for the day. Maybe tomorrow?"

Ash was obviously crestfallen and it hurt Mina. She was resolute though, she had to work on fixing the problem she had caused.

"Oh... What are you doing?"

Having been Ash's girlfriend for a few months, she had begun to pick up on his little habits and looks. The look he had right now was a very common look for him. He always got it when he was jealous and over protective of her.

"I promised to visit Tails at Freedom H.Q and we were going to talk about what has been... happening recently."

Ash's look went from jealous to worried.

"You sure that's a good idea? You know that you aren't the most popular person with the Freedom Fighters right now. Will you be safe?"

Mina began to laugh at what he was saying. Throwing her arm around Ash's shoulder, she continued to chuckle as she replied.

"Ash, I've known these people for years. Yes, they aren't very happy with me, but it isn't like they are going to kidnap and murder me. Besides, it's just Tails, so stop worrying. I'll be fine."

Ash sighed and dropped his head a little.

"Alright Mina, if you're sure. Just... you know, be careful."

Mina gave him another kiss on the cheek.

"I will be. Anyway, I'll make it up to you tomorrow, alright?"

Nodding he smiled at her as she walked out the door and headed towards H.Q.

* * *

Tails had just finished his breakfast and was about to head out the door when his mother stopped him. It was still weird to have a mother bother to ask him where he was going to be during the day, to worry about him that it still surprised him at times.

"Tails dear, one minute."

Tails turned and cocked his head to the side quizzically, silently asking what was on her mind.

"I was just wondering what you were planning to do today."

Tails was about to say, but then he remembered that his mother was on the council. While he had initially liked the idea of giving the people more say in how they were ruled, this was a delicate subject. It pained him to not tell his mother the full truth, but it was hard to know who to trust right now.

'That didn't stop you from suggesting that Mina come over and help with the plans though did it.'

Tails shoved that thought aside to answer his mother's question.

"I'm just going to H.Q. The Tornado needs a few small tune ups, and I'm meeting a friend there to chat."

Mrs. Prower gave her son a look that he had not seen before. It was a little bit intimidating but she whatever had brought it on, she didn't mention it.

"Well, enjoy yourself. And make sure to get back home for dinner."

Tails nodded his head, still wondering what that look had been about, but not really questioning it.

"Alright Mom, I'll see you later."

Waving his hand he grabbed his pack of tools and walked off towards H.Q.

* * *

Mina couldn't help but be a little nervous as she entered H.Q. given everything that had happened. Thankfully Tails was already there when she opened the door, sitting on the couch with what looked like maps spread out on the coffee table in front of him. She let out her breath, not having noticed she was holding it in, and walked over and plopped down on the couch next to Tails.

His head perked up when he felt the couch move. He smiled at her in greeting and lowered his head back down to the papers strewn about. Mina looked down at them but couldn't make heads or tails of them.

"Tails, what's all this?"

Tails smirked a little and then began to explain what was on the papers.

"These are maps of Mobotropolis and some of the surrounding area. These over here, are people who the team and I have noticed as being rather outspoken about their dislike of Nicole. However, being outspoken doesn't mean they are one of the people who wanted to kill her."

Mina shivered at that thought. Tails noticed and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Hey, I'm right here, you're right there, and we are going to fix this. We have to start somewhere don't we?"

Mina nodded and began surveying the list of people. They both forgot about Tail's hand on her shoulder.

"So, I understand the list of people, but what's the map for?"

"Well, I've been looking around, and looking for areas that might be good for secret meetings. Because Nicole constructed the city every hidey hole is located in here. That doesn't mean that somebody couldn't have made one, but with this map we will definitely have most of them."

Tails grabbed a red marker that was lying down on the table and started to circle buildings and areas. As he began to explain what he thought the best course of action would be, Mina would sometimes come in with what she thought they should do.

So they sat there, two friends reconciled, plotting out a way to help another friend.

* * *

So, Sonic the Hedgehog meets Megaman... I sense trouble in the future. Don't get me wrong, it could go well, but I just don't know. Plus, my favorite Megaman comics were made by Dreamwave productions which shut down in 2005. Shame, it was really good, had a lot of promise. I would write a fanfiction about the series, but as far as I can tell it isn't very well known which makes it very hard to introduce the characters. Oh well.


	4. A Date

Before I start this chapter off I would first like to apologize for not updating recently. My brother came to visit for a couple of weeks so I've been busy spending time with him. I would like to say thank you for any of my readers who have stuck with me despite me not uploading chapters consistently. To apologize I made this chapter longer than usual. Now, on with the story!

* * *

She had promised him a date and by Aurora if she wasn't going to do her best to make it a good one. Mina had spent part of the previous night and most of the early morning planning and preparing this day out for herself and Ash. As she put the last things needed for the picnic into the basket and covered it up she glanced at her clock.'Nearly ten. Just in time.'She looped the basket into the crook of her arm and made one last mental check to make sure she had remembered everything. Nodding to herself she took off, speeding out of the city and a little ways into the forest.

It was only a matter of seconds before she arrived at the Lake of Rings. Walking over to a nearby hollow log she gently lay the basket down and pushed it in, making sure that she could still reach it but that it would be difficult to she stood up and brushed off her knees she noticed a figure from the corner of her eyes. Looking up she recognized them immediately. She finished patting the dirt off her knees and walked over to them, slowly but calmly. Sitting down next to her old friend they both stared into the lake for a little while, not saying anything. Finally Mina looked into his face to gauge his emotions.

It was a strange sight. She was so used to him always having a "devil may care" smile and eyes full of life. Now his typical expressions were all hidden beneath a blank facade and she couldn't help but hurt a little for him. She continued looking at him for a little bit and then decided to try for a conversation.

"Morning Sonic."His eyes seemed to come back to life and he turned his head towards her, obviously surprise that she was there. He turned back towards the lake and didn't reply. Silence continued to pervade the surrounding area. Mina felt a little awkward about being there but seeing Sonic in this state she knew it would be for the best if she stayed. For his sake.

"So...how's Sally holding up?"Ever since Eggman's latest attack with the Death Egg things had gone downhill for Sonic. Sally had been badly injured during the fight and it had been very hard for everyone but especially him. Then Mina had started this whole problem between the people and Nicole which only weighed down on the poor hedgehogs shoulders.

She hadn't realized how hard he had taken it. Everyone always knew Sonic as the happy go lucky fight to the bitter end hero of Mobius. They would sometimes forget that he was not just the hero of the world but also a young man who could be easily be overwhelmed by the life around him.

She wasn't really expecting a response to her question; she just wanted to try getting him to talk. She was rather surprised when he answered her.

**"**...Dr. Quack says that she'll pull through. She..."Tears came to his eyes, probably unbidden. Mina put her arm around him but didn't say anything. She knew he needed to let this out. Sonic took one or two deep breaths before he tried to continue.

"She hasn't woken up yet."

He turned right to Mina then, the tears that had been in his eyes now traveling downwards to his chin.

"Mina, what can I do? How can I protect you, Tails, Amy... Heck, the whole population of New Mobotropolis if I can't even keep the one most important to me safe?"His voice broke then and he began to silently sob a little. Mina simple pulled him into her arms and held him. They sat there for some time, the hero of the world quietly releasing his fears and worries while the most popular singer simply held him.

"Sonic, you can't blame yourself for what happened to Sally. You and she both knew the risks you would take when you decided to start the Freedom Fighters and were willing to take those if it meant that there was a possibility that Eggman could be stopped."

Mina pushed Sonic away but kept her hands on his shoulders. She leaned her head down so that they were eye to eye.

**"**Sally is a strong girl and she will pull through this. The best thing you can do right now is simply stay near her, so that when she wakes up you will be right there for her."Comforting somebody was not really Mina's area of expertise, usually Sally would have been the one to try and make sure that one of the members was okay. However the usual option wasn't available so Mina had to try something.

Mina was surprised when Sonic pushed her hands off his shoulders and stood up. Looking down at her she could see the pain and anguish in his eyes, though the rest of his body did not show any sign of what was going on in his heart.

"Mina… thanks. I'll see you around."With that that blue blur lived up to his nickname and sped out of the forest. Mina simply smiled to herself and sped off after him, just to make sure he made to the hospital without any problems.

* * *

"So Mina, what is it that you want to do today?"After Mina had made sure that Sonic had gone to the hospital like she had suggested she rushed over to Ash's house so they could start their date. It was nice to spend time with him like this again. They hadn't gone on a date since that horrible night after her concert. This time though she would like to have a quiet date with him so she decided that a picnic in a place that it would be unlikely they would be interrupted would be perfect.

Mina linked their arms together and leaned her head on his shoulder causing him to blush a little. She loved doing this to him.

**"**Well, I thought that we could just take a walk, maybe sit by the Lake of Rings and just chat. We haven't really been able to just talk recently."Ash nodded his head in agreement and agreed to her idea. It was a simple date, no trying to make it the best thing ever, just two people who wanted to spend time together. Sometimes those could be the best ones though.

"...and so I said 'Skarloey, buddy, there is no way that you could have booked Rheneas to sing in Downunda' and he told me that he had. Imagine that!"As Ash finished telling his story Mina had to chuckle a little. Rheneas was a good singer but there was very little chance that he would ever be a big hit in Downunda. Ash finished off one of the sandwiches that Mina had made and his hand dove into the basket and pulled out a bottle of ginger ale.

Mina remained quiet for a while, just enjoying the moment. Her, Ash, the quiet and wonderful peace that the surrounding forest seemed to exude from every branch of a tree and blade of grass. Unfortunately peace has never lasted and Mina's thoughts began to turn to her conversation with Tails from the previous day.

* * *

"_Well Tails, now that we have that all settled I have to get going. I'm planning something for Ash."_

"_Actually Mina... There's something I need to tell you."_

_Mina looked over at him and was surprised to see him fidgeting a little. This only made her curious as to what he had to say that could make him this nervous. Now that her curiosity had been awoken it wanted to know so she turned her full attention to him. _

**"**_Umm... You can't tell Ash about what we're doing. I know that you two are going out but this is something that is necessary."_

_Mina couldn't help but be a little shocked by what Tails said. She couldn't tell Ash anything about what was going on? He wouldn't be allowed to help with trying to protect Nicole?_

**"**_But why Tails? Why can't we bring Ash in on this? Wouldn't it be easier for us to find out who is trying to get rid of Nicole if we had as many people as possible?"_

**"**_That's the problem Mina! We don't know who is trying to kill her. I'm not saying or even trying to suggest that Ash is in on this but we don't know and I'm not willing to take the chance that he might be part of it or that he might accidentally let it slip. I'm sorry but I must be adamant about this."_

_He was right and Mina knew it. This was a very delicate matter and should be handled delicately. But this didn't feel right, keeping something this big in her life away from Ash. Looking at Tails face she could see that he was not going to change his mind about this._

* * *

'What do I do?' Mina wondered to herself as she sat, staring at her boyfriend. He seemed to notice and turned to her.

"Hey babe, you okay? You got something on your mind?"

Mina smiled at him and shook her head slightly.

"No, not really. Just thinking of what I was discussing with Tails yesterday."

Mina noticed that when she mentioned Tails Ash's grip tightened on his bottle.

"I've been meaning to ask you what you two talked about yesterday. What, did he and the other FF guys chew you out about the whole Nicole thing?"

His had begun to rise through out his sentence and by the end he was almost yelling. Mina was rather surprised at this. Sure Ash had a tendency of being a little over protective of her but she had never seen him get like this about it.

"NO! Well, I mean yes but not really! It was just me and Tails talking things out. Yes it had to do with Nicole but they didn't chew me out. It was fine, really Ash."

Now she had started yelling. This wasn't turning out like she had hoped at all.

"So what exactly did you talk about? You aren't exactly being clear about it. Or is this just something you have to keep secret, like everything else the Freedom Fighters decide?"

By now they had both stood up and were yelling loudly at each other.

"Now that isn't fair Ash. We both know that they try their hardest to keep us all safe. They risk life and limb for our protection and they have more experience with dealing with these things. I think that by now they would know how to handle things and if it would require not telling the general populace something I think we should at least give them the benefit of the doubt!"

"Oh, because that really worked when they all left when the Iron Dominion was around!"

"We both know that Nicole was under cover and in complete control!"

They were both breathing very deeply now after having shouted loud enough that she wouldn't have been surprised if Knuckles had heard them from his position on Angel Island. Ash was the first to speak again, not shouting, but with a even voice.

"Mina, I'm sorry but they aren't as wonderful as they've been made out to be. They have gotten to full of themselves. Yes they've done some good but now they just try and impose their will on us. It isn't right."

Mina was silent for some time. Was Ash right? Was she just allowing the team to use her to gain back the peoples love for Nicole so that they could have better control of the city?

"...You're wrong Ash."

He couldn't be right. She knew them. They were good people who had given more then their fair share to protect the people. Bunnie, Antoine, Rotor, Amy, Tails, Sonic...Sally. All had done more then they needed to. These people wouldn't try and take over the people.

"They wouldn't do that. I think that you're just jealous again. You're worried that Sonic or somebody else might steal me away from you. Have you so little faith in me?"

Ash seemed a little taken aback by her words not to mention a little bit ashamed. He tried to say something to her but she cut him off.

"No Ash, I'm sorry but I don't want to hear it. Right now I just... I would just like some time to think."

Ash's hung his head. He looked back up at her after a few seconds and nodded. He slowly walked out of the clearing leaving Mina alone with her thoughts.

* * *

Phew. That was a pain to write mostly because New Mobotropolis has nothing to do for dates. I mean seriously, there are only two places to eat, not much in the way of entertainment as far as I know, and it's surrounded by forest perfect for taking walks.

Believe it or not that entire argument scene was not in my original plan for this chapter. I hadn't been planning on them having their argument for another two chapters but they decided to start it so I just wrote it.

I realized while reading through some of my previous chapters that I've been doing a lot of bashing on poor Ian. So I decided to list the top three things that I think were pure brilliance on his part. Ready? Here we go:

#3: The whole idea of Espio and the Ninja clans. I love this idea because it gives us more backstory on ol' Esp and goodness knows he needed it. Thank you Ian!

#2: Bringing back Constable Remington. This is a personal one because Remington is my favorite character. He was so epic in the old Knuckles series, which I own most of, and it was always a good issue when he showed up.

And #1 is: Bean and Bark. Do I really need to explain this one? These characters had been lost in obscurity to main stream sonic fans until they suddenly crashed Sonic's birthday party. Ever since then they have just been giving us such great moments.

Please review and while I don't promise a new chapter in the next week, I will try to work on my stories as often as possible. Speaking of my stories, I'm going to be writing a one shot about one of my other favorite over looked pairings. Stay tuned!

Until Later,

Tybalt


	5. A Discovery

Happy All Hallows Eve everyone! I hope you are all going to enjoy your holiday, but first, the Chapter!

* * *

**"**Alright, so all we all clear on how this is going to work out?"

There were nods all around the room, indicating everyone knew their part in the plan.

**"**Okay, now remember, even if you think you've found the person we're after, do not confront them. All we want to do this time is gather info. We will all pool that info and then figure out the best candidates to follow."

**"**Excuze-moi, but our we all zure zat zis is ze best decizion? After all, we are doing ze spying on our own people."

Tails looked over at Antoine. Before he could address the point he had made Bunnie stood up.

**"**Ah 'ave ta agree with my 'usband. Ah know that things have been tough around here, but do we really 'ave to spy on the people? Isn't there anything else we can do?"

Tails could see that the other freedom fighters were beginning to have second thoughts on this whole idea as well. He had to admit that he was struggling with the entire idea as well, but what other choice was there? He and Mina had gone over plan after plan for days but none of them were good enough. Tails let out a small sigh. What would Sally do? She was always so good at getting all the Freedom fighters focused on one plan, even if it didn't seem the best. Tails was surprised when he felt something on his shoulder. He looked around and saw Mina standing next to him, giving him a small smile. Tails didn't know why, but just from her smile he was already feeling better. With a little more confidence he turned back to the others.

**"**Look, I know this doesn't feel right and believe me, if this wasn't the best plan I wouldn't even consider it. But out there are people who were willing to sneak into HQ and attack Nicole. What else are we supposed to do? We can't let them know that we are onto them, so we have to use this plan."

Everyone looked around at each other, trying to figure out what the others were thinking. Slowly, they all realized that Tails was right. Rotor got up from the couch and walked over to Tails. Tails knew that Rotor had been the one that had been the most hurt by the peoples attack on Nicole. After all, he had created her...sort of. Knowing that those that they all had sworn to protect now wanted to destroy one of his best friends had been tough on looked up at Rotor and was surprised that Rotor was smiling. Rotor put his hand on Tail's shoulder and then turned to the others.

**"**I have to agree with him. Even if we don't like it, there are citizens out there who attacked us, US, not just Nicole. If we want to make sure that they don't decide to hurt anyone else, we will have to find out who they are. This is the only way."

And that was that. Everyone nodded and grouped up around a map of New Mobotropolis.

**"**Alright" Tails began, "We should start with Bunnie and Antoine right here..."

* * *

**"**You know Tails, that was a pretty good speech."

Tails blushed heavily and tried to focus his eyes on the drink that he had gotten from Uncle Chucks place. He and Mina were sitting at one of the outside tables, trying to keep an eye out for anything strange happening.

**"**Oh...umm, you really think so?"

Mina had to chuckle a little at his reaction. How was it that he could go from a leader of the Freedom Fighters and then right to an innocent young boy. She couldn't help but smile.

**"**Yes, I do. Not many people can pull off leading a group of people many years their senior. You did a very good job."

Tails wasn't allowed time to blush this time because he suddenly heard Antoines voice over the radio in his ear.

**"**Tailz, nothing ztrange is 'appening 'ere. Should moi et Bunnie move to another zector?"

Tails mentally pulled out the map of New Mobotropolis so he could see where everybody was. Rotor had the area near the castle covered, there were plenty of people there that he knew so it wouldn't be strange for him to be there. Antoine and Bunnie had gotten the town square, using their status as recently married as a front for them looking for something in the market. He and Mina had decided to play the part of friends having lunch, which covered the area around Chucks place. They still had to watch some of the housing districts and also around the hospital.

**"**Hmm...No, you and Bunnie stay where you are. Me and Mina will walk over to the hospital. We can go visit Sally while keeping an eye out."

**"**Very well Tailz. Give our regardz to ze princzess."

With that Antoine cut off their connection and Tails could hear what was going around him better. He hadn't noticed that while he was talking Mina had started to stare off into space, her mind obviously thinking about something.

**"**Mina?"

She didn't even seem to register that he had spoken to her. Tails leaned across the table and put his hand on hers and shook them a little bit, calling her name again.**  
****  
****"**Mina?"

Her eyes focused back to him and her previous happiness seemed to have disappeared.

**"**Are you okay?"

Mina smiled, but it wasn't her usual smile. This one was forced, hollow, not really her.

**"**Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about things."

Tails frowned at her response but didn't push the issue. Over the last few days they had spent a good amount of time together, making plans and revising them so he knew that Mina would never tell him what was up until she was ready to actually talk about it. That was just how she was. If he tried to force her to tell him it wouldn't end well.

**"**Okay, well we're going to go over to the hospital to visit Sally and check the are there for anything suspicious. You good?"

Mina stood up and brushed off her dress, straightening up whatever wrinkles or creases it had gained from her sitting, picked up her plastic cup and threw it into a nearby garbage can.

**"**Now I am."

The gentleman in Tails decided to show more than usual and he bowed a little while holding his hand out in the direction of the hospital, allowing her to go first. She walked by him and he quickly followed, walking next to her, but still slightly behind so that she could have a little space. Mina wasn't used to this. She had known that Tails saw that she was troubled, it wasn't as if she had really been trying to hide it, but he wasn't doing anything about it. Usually Ash would be all around her, trying to figure out what she was thinking or what was bothering her so that he could fix it. Sonic had been the same. Tails wasn't doing that though. He was just...there.

He offered support without actually saying anything. It was a new thing for her and she didn't know what to do. Despite her mind being plagued by these thoughts, they continued walking, Tails keeping an eye out for anyone acting suspiciously and Mina trying her best but her mind would keep wandering back to her argument with Ash earlier that week.

They hadn't talked with each other since then and she was wondering what to do. Was this just a short break from each other or something? Honestly, she had never actually thought of what she would do if she and Ash ever had a falling out. She was so used to having him around, helping her make decisions, telling her what her schedules were, being her manager. Now however her days had just been...different. She woke up when she wanted to, was doing something she chose to do, heck, she had barely talked with the other group members in the last few days. She felt bad about that, but helping Nicole was her first priority right now. That was why she had been spending so much time around Tails. **  
****  
**There was another thing that had been bothering her. She was worrying that by spending so much time around him people might start getting the wrong idea, thinking that she was stepping out on Ash. Or even worse, she might give Tails the wrong idea and then she would have to hurt him. Thankfully he didn't seem to be doing that, so she wasn't too worried.

**"**Hey Tails?"

Tails looked towards her and couldn't help but hope that she would be ready to talk about what was bothering her.

**"**Yes?"

**"**What are we going to do after all this? I mean, with whoever it is that was behind the attack on Nicole and once we bring her back. What happens then?"

Tails couldn't help but scratch the fur under his chin while he thought of the answer to that. He hadn't really thought about that, he was just wanting to make sure that his friend would be well protected.

**"**I don't know...I guess that things would probably go back to what they were. Nicole would be back in HQ, we would be making plans to stop Eggman, you would be singing again. Life would be back to normal."

Mina's head seemed to drop and Tails could barely hear what she said. All he caught was:

**"**...normal huh?"

Guilt came over the young fox, realizing that he had accidentally said the wrong thing to her. He was about to try and re try, hoping that he would be able to help her feel better when he realized that they were at the hospital.

**'**I'll save it for later. It would probably be best not to continue this line of thought around Sally.'

* * *

It was a strange thing to see Sally in the condition that she was in. The once strong princess seemed so fragile just lying there, not moving except for her breathing, her arms having long tubes coming out of them and attached to different machines. Neither of them were surprised to see Sonic sitting next to her, obviously sleeping. It was amazing that he was able to sleep there though, hospital chairs weren't known for being very comfortable. Both Tails and Mina walked over to Sonic, trying their best to keep the sound of their feet as quiet as possible. Tails pulled out a chair for Mina then went out of the room to find one for himself.

Mina sat down near Sally, after having pulled out a blanket from the unused bed in the room and covering Sonic. She slowly pushed Sally's hair away from her face, allowing her a better look at the sleeping princess. She chuckled at that thought.

'Maybe if Sonic kissed her she would wake up'

However, she knew that this was no fairy tale, and there was no magic spell to break here. Sally would have to pull out of this herself, and while Sonic being there would might help, there was no guarantee that she would wake up.

**"**Hi Sally...I see that Sonic has been taking good care of you. Sorry about not coming to visit until now, me and Tails have been working on something. I'll tell you about when you're all better. You would be so proud of Tails though, he really has grown."

Mina paused for a second, thinking about what she had just said.

**"**That's not quite true though. He has always been older than he looked, always so mature, almost the polar opposite of Sonic here. He really is a nice guy though, I feel jealous of the girl who is able to get him. You know, he actually came to my house in the middle of the night to apologize to me once? I suppose he was just worried that if Ash caught him there might be trouble."

With the thought of Ash Mina's head once again sunk, and she couldn't help a tear from coming into her eye.

**"**I wish you were here Sally. We all miss you and I could use some girl help. Me and Ash we...we..."

Before she was able to finish her sentence she heard a knock on the door and looked up. There was Tails, but there was somebody behind him. Tails motioned for her to come out to the hallway so she quietly said her goodbye and stepped out. Now that she was out in the hallway it was easier to see who it was that had been next to Tails.

**"**Espio! What are you doing here? Is Nicole alright? Where is she?"

Both Tails and Espio held up their hands to try and stave off Mina's questions.

**"**Nicole's alright, I've left her with someone we can trust. But there was a...complication. Nicole is...well, she's a mobian."

* * *

GASP! Plot twist? No not really, the whole thing is explained in my other story, From the Ashes.

Sigh, I'm sorry for making you guy's wait for this chapter, but it was unavoidable. However, I'm trying to get back into the swing of things, so while I won't have a consistent release time for the chapters, I'm going to try and make sure you don't have to wait as long as you did for this one. Please Read and Review. Reviews are nice, I like review, they make me feel all fuzzy and warm inside. Until later,

Tybalt


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